Bhilai Steel to mull on funding Rowghat rly project

Bhilai, Apr 3: The Bhilai Steel Plant (BSP) will not fund the proposed DalliRajhara-Rowghat railway line project if the public sector unit did not get lease of iron ore mines at Rowghat, its Managing Director R P Singh said today.

''We will have to re-consider our decision to fund the project if BSP did not get iron ore mines at Rowghat,'' he told a news conference here.

Admitting that six iron ore blocks at Rowghat were earlier reserved by the government for the public sector through a notification in 1961, Mr Singh said the BSP had been making efforts over the years to get clearance from Forest and Environment ministries for leasing mines.

''However, the government later de-reserved few iron ore blocks and allotted them to other companies,'' he said, adding under such circumstances it would be difficult for the BSP to provide funds for the proposed DalliRajhara-Rowghat railway line project.

UNI